The worst of that is when he crashes and you see the point right when the kite (very high mind you) takes stress on and tomahawks to a crash. Most all know the feeling of 400lbs of kite power pulling you while under water *SHIVER*

looks like you boys need to get rid of the skirt and pull your pants up.

its only water for one, the kite is an RPM and is depowering as much as any bridled kite would as soon as he lets go of the bar. Don't loose the war without even fighting a battle. Learning wakestyle is no different then anything else, you have to learn the basics, build up a skill set that supports the tricks you want to be able to do.

or just make sure your panties are ironed out and pressed before you go to the beach already too psyched out to progress.

Then at least do powered hooked because soft dangle is quite lame. I personally will keep pushing anything hard and powered but unhook is pretty difficult to practice in Our set up down here. Not to say I don't love it and won't keep trying to work it in.

Shaun Richman has created a nice powered blend of "hooked and wake elements that are also a beautiful thing and respected but yeah no dangle floaty stuff. Laaaame

Its nice when there is no current, waves, gusts, its waist deep, and you have unlimited kites to beat the $hit out of. Since getting a new wakeboard boat this year I have been gettin pulls in regularly when there is no wind however. Great cross training, yet everything happens much faster. Convenient to just let go of the rope if things are going bad....

I guess I feel that it's part of the majesty of wakestyle. The pain suffered is worth it in the end! But we'll have to see. I've got an OBX trip coming up, so flat, warm, shallow water are in my future in addition to potentially a lot of pain.

Are the wakeboarding falls from jumps more painful since the source of the pull isn't from as high? I've done a cable park once before, but never tried any handlepasses.

The dangle is dead, unless it is huge I agree that the unhooked sent dangle passes/anything are/is ugly.

As far as perfect conditions go... well your not gonna get them often here so just start working with what you have or with what you are willing to drive for. There is no question that great flat water conditions will help you progress but so will succeeding in shitty conditions.

You don't need to have access to a Shitload of kites to destroy. (sounds like if you have a new wakeboard boat you can afford all the kites you want) You just need to learn to crash right with the ones you have aka hooking your safety leash to the chicken loop or just above it. That way , just like dropping the rope while wakeboarding, you disengage from the pull of the kite once you let go of the bar while crashing. This lessens the stress on the kite when it crashes as well. Testimony to that is the fact that I am still using almost three year old kites ,snow and water, and they don't have any issues.

Doing things right and understanding why a specific technique works is paramount to smooth progressive unhooked riding. Start with a raley and work through back roll, front rolls, landing to blind, ect. Don't worry about the crashes, be smart and stay within your ability and don't skip steps it will only set you back.

jensmadwind wrote:you guys are still making it sound harder than it is.

The dangle is dead, unless it is huge I agree that the unhooked sent dangle passes/anything are/is ugly.

As far as perfect conditions go... well your not gonna get them often here so just start working with what you have or with what you are willing to drive for. There is no question that great flat water conditions will help you progress but so will succeeding in shitty conditions.

You don't need to have access to a Shitload of kites to destroy. (sounds like if you have a new wakeboard boat you can afford all the kites you want) You just need to learn to crash right with the ones you have aka hooking your safety leash to the chicken loop or just above it. That way , just like dropping the rope while wakeboarding, you disengage from the pull of the kite once you let go of the bar while crashing. This lessens the stress on the kite when it crashes as well. Testimony to that is the fact that I am still using almost three year old kites ,snow and water, and they don't have any issues.

Doing things right and understanding why a specific technique works is paramount to smooth progressive unhooked riding. Start with a raley and work through back roll, front rolls, landing to blind, ect. Don't worry about the crashes, be smart and stay within your ability and don't skip steps it will only set you back.

I have got hooked on the waveriding and downwinder approach to kiteboarding and after a couple hundred miles this year (thanks West, TG, IVO, Blaise) I've found thats the bees knees for me...Constantly dropping kites in surf will ruin them pretty quick and I save my efforts for any wakestyle moves for Wolf or "special flat spots". Gettin my backrolls down pretty good and better raley pops too, albeit hooked....Unhooked at Wolf is a little scary! Guess it all depends on what your trying to get out of the sport and ultimately what makes you happiest while riding.... I do worry about pullin the trigger too hard cuz if an injury happens then I cant work in my profession.

BTW if anyone wants to do some cold water wakeboarding this fall/winter lemme know. Best time of year for good water as lakes are generally empty. Good stuff Jens...

folks b talkin bout injury but want the good stuff. anything big and jacked upside down and horizontal hooked or unhooked, is gonna get something torn one day if ur pushin. this is ur medal. you can baby step all day, but at wolf especially, you will have a timing, speed, height and impact that is just impossible to practice up to. My mcl injury this spring kept me from sleeping for months it ached sooo bad, but without it I would not have this new technique etched in my brain. people think they're going big and no need to explain to otheres, cuz you will know from either a possible injury or now feeling quite humbled. want to avoid injusry then stick to our waveriding

Right and I don't see why it's looking to be shamed at. People can take kiteboarding any way they want. Much respect to anyone who tries to master any style. If you just want to mow the lawn, cause that's your thing....awesome! It's whatever makes you feel good that counts. Most know I like the big floaty stuff, I always have. It's what got me attracted to the sport and makes it fun for me. I'd rather wakeboard if I want to stay low to the ground. Boots and consistent pull not to mention a perfect wake help a ton here.

I disagree with those saying push yourself more and even more so saying wakestyle is the style to do. I think, whatever makes you happy, then go for it. You don't have to like it, but certainly don't bring it down for someone else. 70% of the people here can't do a backroll or jump higher then 10ft......and who cares.....I guarantee 100% are having fun

I completely agree Adrien! I am a competitive person, so I'm challenging myself in lieu of having a buddy to constantly compare myself to. I'm hoping to have a great time coming up though... even though I'll probably be the only one beating myself up.

Wakestyle shouldn't be too hard if I take it step by step, true. So what are you saying for the leash? Ride "suicide"? Or just hook it up normally? Any other tips for how to make the learning curve less steep? I've gotten some surface passes done in the Chicagoland area at Keegs when the chop wasn't too terrible.

Adrian
No need to get all defensive or protective of the non wakestylers, this isn't kiteforum. Howerver you do sound just like half the dudes on there feverishly justifying why mowing the lawn isn't lame when compared to the other aspects of the sport. Yes kiting is beautiful and those of us out there who decided to give it a shot are experiencing something ( no matter the level of riding) that non kiters will ever understand. We are on a thread about Wakestyle, and based on the op and your response i thought our young friend could use some positive response.

Suicide is such a strong word. Thats what hooking your safety just above the chicken loop used to be called. Kites did not used to depower when the control bar was released. Now kites depower enough by just sheeting out all the way which is what happens if you chuck the bar when an unhooked attempt goes wrong and you have your leash hooked up "Suicide'. The reason you want to do this is so you can recover your kite quicker and with less hassle then if you hook your leash to the designed attatchment point. You will see videos of guys hooking up directly to the chicken loop, this depowers the same way but if you had to pop your safety on the chicken loop your leash becomes useless. Maybe somebody can fill me in on what I am missing with that.

So , get used to letting your control bar go as soon as you know your going to wipe. You only have to contend with the momentum you have at that moment instead of getting continually yanked by the kite. Your kite is designed to handle this type of impact.

The kite should always be parked at a 45 while setting up and popping, throughout the trick the kite should maintain that angle or drop a bit. The whole idea of powered unhooked is pop and drop. The kite launches you into the trick then goes away until you land and reengage your edge. If the kite climbs at all throughout the attempt it will begin to manipulate your body positioning. If this happens you have to fight the kite for control of your bodies movements and you will likely not be able to complete the trick.

Just like landing a boost with speed you have go be pointed downwind to land with any control.

I am having trouble fully understanding any of FSPs posts but it sounds like he is saying you have to pay to play and you haven't accomplished anything without an injury merit badge. To get back to Adrians defense of the non wakestyler. He is right and that applies to the levels of wakestyle riding as well. Having fun with what your comfortable with will allow you to want to pursue bigger and better things. Chances are you will never achieve "Pro Rider" level of ability, 99% of us won't. Don't fear the ramifications of a double s-mobe to blind gone wrong if you what your working on learning is a back to blind.

Keep on trying cause its a fun road to go down.

a breakthrough session for me in Key West around 8 years ago.

first trip to hatteras and my first unhooked backroll kiteloop

i still remember this crash, still new to unhooked rotations I let my kite climb in the window, got disorientated, yarded , and slammed on my head backwards into the water. It wouldn't have happened if the kite stayed at a 45 or the wipeout wouldn't have been as bad if i would have just let go of the bar right around this moment.

U make wake sound so hard core but the only problem is its super gusty at wolf...way more than where u take ur trips and the lake u ride on. I think the only fear is what wolf can do to u mid move. Big crazy unpredictable hooked stuff with an element of surprise is our wake and not any less hard on the body..that's for sure

actually I am trying to paint a realistic picture of how wakestyle is doable by anybody who would want to take it up. It is not rocket science just another thing in life that requires proper understanding of the process to get the desired result.

you on the other hand talk jibberish and offer nothing new to the conversation

Thanks Jens. I know it's totally doable... and I've gotten this far by myself, which wasn't easy, so hard landings aren't discouraging... just something I don't want to see in video form.

Thanks for the tips. That's pretty much what I've been missing... just general tips for making the progression easier. Surface passes are all I really wanted to mess with on the big lake, but Hatteras on Saturday, bright and early. Unhooked railey -> Backroll, then railey ->front roll, then? Landing to blind and with a surface pass?

Don't quite know what your getting at with the . If you get a chance go watch the boys at the Real Slick and see how concerned those guys are about crashing. They go faster and harder than you or I ever will and they progress. I have crashed more than I have landed on all my pass attempts and as I said it before its only water.

To the contrary of other posters my most painful crashes and the ones that have caused me long lasting discomfort have all come riding strapless in waves. Coming in with huge swell lit out of my gourd and as I came down the rolling water I continued to accelerate as my kite continued to go deeper into the window. I couldn't edge against the kite, couldn't handle the speed and just went off the board face first. I hit the water so hard I thought my shoulder sheared right off. Second most painful wipeout I have experienced in a decade of kiting. The first was falling of the lip of a wave and as I went down the face and approached the bottom my kite climbed in the window and forced my harness hook back into my ribs. Both of those crashes ended my session and put me on the beach for a while. I have never experienced anything like those while doing unhooked tricks.

Good luck in Hatteras. Sounds like you have a good plan. Don't be in a rush to move to the next item on your trick list until you can do the previous one with speed and control.

As far as surface passes go, I only use them after landing blind. I am not sure were else they are functional.

I've had my fair share of crashes. I do a lot of landkiting on a mountainboard, and those crashes make me wince, especially mine that are caught on video. Watching crashes really sends a chill up my spine, but I've been whipped across the water so many times before with no regrets. When you're doing it, it really just looks worse than it is.

As for surface passes, I've used them to make sure I have a good feel for "what its like unhooked," and also for what part of the bar to grab behind my back. Just generally getting used to the feeling of passing the bar. Sooooooooooon.